Mavericks' first step to winning games is fixing their transition defense

In the Dallas Mavericks' first game of the season on Wednesday night, one of the most glaring issues was the lack of transition defense. It led to the Houston Rockets winning 128-110 and scoring 29 of those 128 points on fast breaks.

Mavericks' transition defense struggled against the Rockets

A big thing the Mavs struggled with in this game was controlling the pace and playing how they wanted to. Early on, they were forcing late shots for the Rockets on defense and had good ball movement on offense that generated good looks from beyond the arc, but once some early turnovers hit and shots stopped falling, the game started to get out of hand.

The Rockets were able to capitalize in transition off of many loose-ball turnovers and even off normal rebounds, where they just passed the ball quickly up the court while many Mavs defenders were still running back. Head coach Dusty May said transition defense was a priority with this team, but it didn't show.

"That was one of our priorities in training camp, was to fix the transition defense," May said. "We thought we had made strides, and tonight, when things weren't going well, we just let go of our principles, we lost our urgency. And that was ultimately when the game got away from us."

22.7 percent of Houston's points came off of fast breaks, which is already the third most in the league. They also made 11 shots in "very early" shot clock scenarios, which was the most of any team in game one. It goes to show just how poor the Mavericks' transition defense was to start the season, but if the Mavs are able to bring it back in line, it can lead to a lot more competitive games and winning.

Fixing their transition defense would be pivotal for Dallas

Last season, teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio Spurs, and Detroit Pistons were all top teams, and a common factor was that they all had great transition defense. They didn't allow opposing teams to run around them up and down the court because that's the fastest way to get down and lose games. If the Mavericks want to be in talks with those types of teams in the near future, the transition defense needs to be worked on.

Not only does it help a team avoid being down quickly, but also, it allows them to play at their desired pace. Those teams last season were almost always in control of the pace of the game because if they are able to stop transition buckets, they can control the ball and decide which pace of play will give them the best chances to win. Sometimes they might need to match what opponents are doing, or they see another path to win and are able to execute a plan. But if a team doesn't have that control, they are automatically pigeonholed into playing how the opponents want them to play.

It works on both sides of the ball as well, because if the Mavs are able to prevent transition opportunities, they allow themselves to be more prepared defensively. They won't get tired trying to catch up in transition all the time and will have more opportunities to methodically plan their defense for any kind of attack. Stopping those and having that set defense will also make it a lot easier for them not to foul, so opponents can't easily come away with free points.

The Mavericks struggled with this a lot against Houston and it was noticed by how differently they played from the second quarter onward. More fouls kept being committed, shot contests and defenders looked tired, and second-chance points became more frequent for the Rockets. There was nothing the Mavs could do if they couldn't stop the ball and control their pace.

This Mavericks team wants to get out in transition and attack the rim, which can be a very successful strategy. But for them to have those opportunities and play in competitive games, it starts with making sure that you can't get beat by your own game.

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